


Flying

by kadie



Category: Doctor Who, One Direction (Band)
Genre: Fantasy, Fluff, M/M, Mystery, Romance, Suspense
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-09-02
Updated: 2014-09-25
Packaged: 2018-02-15 09:08:55
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,690
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2223420
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kadie/pseuds/kadie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What if LouisandHarry had met in an episode of Doctor Who?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Notes
> 
> WIP - I'll add more notes along the way, if necessary.
> 
> \- It’s recommended that you watch “Voyage of the Damned” (Doctor who, Christmas Special 2007) before reading this, but not necessary.  
> -For The Doctor, this story happens after episode “Planet of the Dead,” between season 4 and 5. (2 years after last seeing Mr. Copper). For Mr. Copper, it’s 3 years after “Voyage of the damned” (2010). (The Doctor is a time traveler, so it can get a bit confusing, sorry).  
> \- Tenth doctor / no companion.  
> \- Mostly everything about planet Sto is made up by me, since they’ve never talked about the planet itself so far.  
> \- OT5 vary in species (meaning most are not human).  
> \- Harry’s POV.  
> \- Larry fic in Doctor Who universe.  
> \- I think it will be about 5 chapters.  
> \- Steven Moffat makes it very hard, so bear with me :)
> 
> Hope you like it!

Harry was happily immersed in his dreams. He was thinking about last year’s Christmas Eve with his family and how he used to really love this time of the year. Every year, they used to eat everything on the table until they were not physically able to anymore and watch a movie afterwards, all three of them together on the couch. He has no idea which movie they watched last year anymore, probably one of these repetitive though classic Christmas films they love to replay during the season, he only remembers them laughing so loud that the sounds of the TV became muffled. He had said goodnight around midnight and gone to his room. He paced around anxiously waiting, looking at the clock on his wall every few minutes. When it was finally 2am, he left his room and went to the living room thinking he’d get there before Gemma, since his room was closer. However, he found her already there.

“I’ve been here since 1am, couldn’t really wait,” she said.

Harry just smiled back and ran towards the Christmas tree. “Have you looked at any of the presents yet?” He asked.

“Of course not! I’ve been waiting for you. We always look at them together,” she said trying to hide a smirk. “I’d never betray your trust like that.”

“Obviously not,” Harry said starting to laugh and then remembering he was supposed to be quiet. “Which ones are mine then?” He whispered.

She passed him a couple of boxes and he sat down next to her on the floor. During the next few minutes, they had fun carefully shaking each box and trying to guess what was inside it. Then, they started writing down each other’s guesses, as they did every year. This was another tradition of theirs, they would always bet on what the presents were and whoever guessed more gifts correctly would be able to keep everything for a week. Harry used to love being able to use Gemma’s new presents in front of her just to tease her. The previous year, she had gotten a beautiful headband and a tiara and Harry had had fun wearing them around in the house for a week – he had guessed that it would have been hair accessories and she thought it would have been bracelets or belts. Gemma had also had fun though because Harry had let her play with his hair, helping him put the adornments in place. To be honest, he wouldn’t mind it even if he had lost the bet. He’d have fun anyway watching her while she wore his shirts, which were huge on her, and his hats. That was always hilarious as well. Whether or not Anne knew about their annual bets, she never mentioned it. Whenever she saw them wearing each other’s things, she’d just overlook it, or say something about admiring how they liked to share their gifts. He was still writing down their guesses when he was startled by a very loud noise, and opened his eyes. This was the worst part of the day, realizing it had just been a dream.

He got up and got his phone, turning his alarm clock off. It was 7am. He looked outside and the city was still sleeping, very few people walking around, and the sun not yet warm enough. His room was his favorite place in the house, all of the pictures and toys and souvenirs each held a tender memory. He went to the bathroom to shower and change, before running towards the kitchen desperately needing some tea. After checking if he had everything he needed with him, he left the house quietly, trying not to wake Mr. Copper.

Even though some people might not appreciate working as a clerk in a bakery, Harry really enjoyed himself. He didn’t mind the early hours, and he had gotten used to the delicious smell of freshly cooked bread in the mornings. His favorite part of the job though was interacting with the customers. Even if he never saw them again, he liked the idea of being able to put a smile on a stranger’s face, helping them just that tiny little bit. For that reason, Harry was always extra kind and patient with everyone. He loved looking at the seniors, mothers, fathers or the kids and trying to imagine how their day might be. During his work hours, he was able to get his mind off of things. He could focus on making other people smile, instead of having to spend all his energy trying his best not to cry.

It was a Saturday, which meant a busy day around the bakery. There was another clerk working alongside Harry, a woman in her forties, but most of the customers were concentrating on Harry’s side of the balcony. Harry was a sixteen year old boy with long curly hair, green eyes, a huge smile and a deep voice. He was a tall boy for his age, but all of the older ladies that came by the shop seemed to always treat him like a baby. He didn’t really mind all the cheek squeezing and nicknaming, everything was very sweet and motherly which felt nice. He was usually wearing colorful shirts with unusual but pretty patterns, tight jeans and boots. Also, ever since that time he had worn Gemma’s hair adornments, he enjoyed an occasional hat or headband. However, during work hours he preferred to pull some of his hair up in a bun to avoid it getting anywhere else. Harry spent the whole day helping clients and chatting with his coworkers in between. When he finally left the bakery, it was already past 6pm.

Harry tried to get home as fast as he could knowing that everyone would be waiting for him, and as soon as he stepped on his doorway he could hear all the voices coming from inside his house. He sighed and walked in. His aunt Dee, his uncle Mike and his three cousins Matt, Ben and Ella were there, his cousins playing video games in the living room, Dee setting the table and Mr. Copper and Mike chatting about their week. Harry walked in and walked straight to aunt Dee to get his kiss on the forehead. He wondered when she’d stop looking so sad every time she saw him.

“Hi dear, how was your day? Are you tired? Dinner’s ready, we were just waiting for you.”

“Hi Aunt Dee,” he forced a smile. “I’m sorry I took so long, it was really busy. I’ll just go change and we can start dinner,” Harry waved hello to Mr. Copper and Mike saying “Good evening!” and yelled towards the living room, “I’ll be right back. Are you guys getting tired of losing? Hope not!”

He walked up to his room trying to get ready to show fake smiles all night to reassure everyone. He really did love his family and enjoyed spending time with them. It’s just that… He didn’t enjoy people feeling like they had to comfort him all the time. His aunt and uncle would always try excessively hard to make Harry smile or laugh every time they came by, and his cousins always seemed as if they didn’t really know what to do or what to expect. Harry knew that they did all of that because they cared about him, so he tried his best to do what he was supposed to, to react how they might want him to. He just wished he could be who he was and not have to force anything. He wasn’t ever going to feel better about what had happened, nor should he. How could he? But he had to keep going anyway, keep going through the motions.

He came back downstairs and sat by the dinner table, everyone was already there chatting to each other. By now, Mr. Copper had already become part of the family. He had moved to the house next to Harry’s almost three years ago, and Harry used to always go by his house with the excuse of helping him with anything he needed. In reality, Harry had always really enjoyed his company. Mr. Copper was an older man, Harry would guess he was over 60, kind-hearted, loyal and he took great pride on his garden. Even now that he had been staying in Harry’s house, he’d still go by his own house to water and look after his impressively beautifully colored flower garden. Mr. Copper had been a travelling salesman, now retired, and he was extremely rich. However, he was always really fascinated about the smallest things, such as finding out the history on Christmas. His family probably hadn’t been very religious. Also, he had been great around Harry these past months. He didn’t expect anything from Harry, which was very refreshing. His only advice about everything that had happened had been “Don’t forget them. Remember them and make them proud.” And Harry was trying to, he really was.

They were all eating dinner and having five conversations at once, when his aunt turned to Harry and asked, “So Harry, when are you going back to school? It’s already the middle of November! You really need to get your A levels.”

Harry hadn’t really thought about that yet. He had finished year 11 and taken his GCSE’s back in July and had decided to take a year off to travel and think about whether college was really what he wanted. However, his plans had changed and ‘school’ hadn’t really crossed his mind since August, “I guess I don’t really plan on going back. At least not for now.”

Everyone sat still, not knowing how to react. His aunt and uncle didn’t look very happy, concern was pouring out of their eyes. It was Ella who broke the silence, “If I could, I’d do the same. School’s so boring,” she said laughing it off. After that, conversation slowly started up again.

After dinner, they played some video games and talked, and the rest of the evening passed by smoothly. Everyone said their goodbyes, agreeing to meet again the next day in the park. Harry couldn’t help but feel a bit relieved once they had left. He was exhausted; it had been a long day. Mr. Copper started washing the dishes and Harry was helping him by drying them and putting them in the cupboards. They were quiet for a few minutes, enjoying the silence that had settled back in the house. Mr. Copper then pointed at the star on Harry’s forearm and said, “New tattoo.”

“Yeah,” he replied. “I got it about a week ago. I just really like the idea of flying to the stars.”

“It’s the second one you get based on the story I told you,” Mr. Copper insisted. “Aren’t you scared of aliens? Earth’s had some pretty frightful encounters in these last few years.”

“We can’t judge all of them by a few. Can you imagine getting to experience completely different worlds, cultures and beings?” Harry said excitedly, “Besides, I just find Astrid’s story really beautiful.”

Mr. Copper smiled while he finished washing the last dish. “It’s already too late for me Harry. I’m an old man, I need my beauty sleep.” He said tapping Harry’s shoulder. “Good night!” And he went up to the guest room.

After finishing drying the dishes, Harry walked to the living room to watch some TV. He laid down on the sofa and tried to concentrate on what was on, some science fiction show, but couldn’t help his mind from drifting. Even though his aunt seemed concerned about his future, he couldn’t really plan for anything right now. Getting through each day was his main focus, at the moment. The only thing that actually made him feel better was the prospect of making other people smile, even if just for a mere second. He enjoyed not having to worry about himself or his future, mainly because he didn’t know what to expect anymore, or what to hope for. He found himself wishing he could just get away for a bit, clear his head, have new experiences, new things to occupy his mind with. Maybe that was what he should be planning for, taking an extended vacation and backpacking through South America or something like that. The problem was that he didn’t really know how to explain any of this to his aunt. At least Harry was sure she wouldn’t bring up this subject again for a while, she was probably going to spend a couple of weeks thinking about how to reproach it without sounding like she was pushing him into it. Harry really didn’t like this feeling that he might be disappointing his family, but he couldn’t really do what they wanted him to right now. Too many ideas were floating though his head and suddenly he felt completely exhausted. He decided to go to bed, finding comfort in the fact that he would be able to rest and get a good night sleep, since he didn’t have to work this Sunday. ‘Tomorrow’s going to be a good day,’ he thought looking forward to spending the entire the day on the outdoors under some sun.

Harry woke up a little after nine, which for him was really impressive. He had already gotten used to getting up early, so he was never actually able to sleep in much. He really hated waking up. He’d be perfectly happy in his dreams, and then he’d wake up and have to come to terms with what had happened for the hundredth time. He wondered when that would stop. He walked towards the bathroom to shower and change, and after that, he went downstairs yearning his morning tea. An already awake Mr. Copper was in the kitchen making some deliciously smelling pancakes.

“Good morning, Mr. Copper! Did you sleep well? What time are we leaving for the park?” Harry said.

“Good morning, Harry! Yes, I slept very well, thank you! I won’t be able to go to the park with you and your family today. I just got the news that a friend of mine is coming to town, and we arranged so that he would be visiting me. I thought you and I could have breakfast together before you left though, otherwise we won’t be able to spend a lot of time together today.”

‘Well, that’s interesting,’ Harry thought. He had never met a friend of Mr. Copper’s before. He wondered where this friend might be from, but didn’t ask since he didn’t want to pry. “Well, that sounds like a great idea! The pancakes smell amazing and you know I’m always up for some.” He said. “Having said that, I really wish I could stay with you and meet this friend of yours.” Harry added while he poured himself some tea and sat by the table to wait for his pancakes.

“I wish you could too, you’d love him!” Mr. Copper said perfectly flipping a pancake. “But your aunt and uncle will be expecting you.”

“I know, I know,” Harry replied. “It’s ok, I’m actually looking forward to this. It’s a nice day to be outside, and I can meet your friend some other time. Is he staying for long?”

“Oh well, you can never really tell with that one. He’s a true genius, but that doesn’t change the fact that he’s completely insane. You never know what’s going to happen around him.” Mr. Copper said laughing loudly. He put the last pancake on top of some others that were on a plate by the oven and brought them to the table.

Harry couldn’t help but feel even more curious now, but he didn’t want to press the subject. Instead, he thanked and complemented Mr. Copper for cooking, and they ended up having a debate on what had been the best pancakes they had ever tasted. Once they finished eating, Harry got up and started clearing the table. Since Mr. Copper was going to stay in and wait for his friend, he offered to wash the dishes himself so that Harry could go meet his family. Harry hugged him goodbye, thanking him one more time, and then left for the park.

Harry would probably say that Mr. Copper was his favorite person to be around right now. He was just so nice and carefree and that made Harry feel very comfortable. However, as much as Harry would have loved to stay, spend more time with him and meet his mysterious out-of-town friend, he was also very excited about getting some fresh air, relaxing, and thinking about nothing during the whole day. Seeing that it was such a beautiful morning and that it didn’t look like it was going to rain, Harry decided to walk to the park. He turned his iPod on and enjoyed these few minutes for himself.

As soon as he got to where they had agreed to meet, Harry could see his family already there. Matt, Ben and Ella were playing football, while Aunt Dee and Uncle Mike watched them and took some pictures. Everyone looked really happy and as if they were enjoying themselves a lot.

“Beautiful day today!” Mike said as soon as he saw Harry walking towards them. “Let’s go Harry! The kids have already started kicking the ball around, go play some football!”  
Harry walked up to his aunt Dee to say hi and so she could give him her usual kiss on the forehead, and waved hello to Uncle Mike. He really enjoyed playing football, but, to be honest, he didn’t have enough coordination to play the sport very well. He’d usually just end up trying to distract his cousins by twirling around, pulling funny faces or, whenever necessary, resorting to actually tickling them to get the ball and score a goal. He started pulling his hair up in a bun and ran towards where his cousins were playing.

The rest of the day went past very quickly. They played football until their legs started to feel a bit sore. After that, they ate and Harry laid down on the grass to read for a little while. He was brought back to reality when his aunt said, “Wow, It’s already 4pm! We should be going. I need to get home early today so I can finish up some things for tomorrow. Come with us Harry, we’ll give you a ride back!”

Harry followed them and sat down on the backseat. Apparently, Matt had also driven to the park, so Harry ended up in his uncle and aunt’s car only the three of them. The ride to his house was a bit quiet. He felt like Aunt Dee wanted to ask him something, she probably wanted to address the ‘school’ subject once again, but was trying to hold back. Harry didn’t have anything against school. Actually, he had always thought he would go to college at some point. He was not so sure anymore.

They pulled into his driveway and said their goodbyes. Harry got out of the car and watched them drive away, waiting until their car was gone from the street before starting to walk towards his house. However, when he looked to his side, he was able to see some shadows moving inside Mr. Copper’s house. A bit apprehensive, but thinking it would probably be Mr. Copper himself who had gone back to his house to get some clothes or something in that nature, Harry decided he better go check what was happening anyway. Harry got his own key to open the door and walked in silently.

“What year is it?” Harry could hear a strange voice say.

“2010! It’s been 3 years, Doctor!” Mr. Copper said laughing.

“No! Really? No! I only meant for it to be 1 year after the last time, tops!” he replied.

“Well, it’s not.” Mr. Copper said. “I’ve been living here on Earth for the last 3 years and they’ve been the most amazing and fascinating three years of my life! Sometimes I can’t quite believe I’m actually here.” He happily explained. “Having said that, I’ve been missing Sto a lot these last few days. Working in the milk market every morning, the delicious smell in the air, I even miss having cyborgs and Zocci around!”

“Well, let’s go visit Sto then! What’s stopping us?”

All that conversation filled with confusing words, some he had never heard before, made Harry excessively curious. He couldn’t stop himself; he had to take a better look at Mr. Copper’s friend. Harry stepped away from behind the door and saw a funny looking man walking around Mr. Copper’s living room. He had brown hair and a foolish smile, and he was wearing a striped blue suit with sneakers. Harry didn’t really know what to think. The man was very strange, but he looked normal. It took Harry a few minutes to realize that he had been spotted; both Mr. Copper and his friend had noticed Harry by the door. Harry, then, walked straight in the direction of this new person and said with a curious smile, “Hi, I’m Harry. Where are we going?”

The man looked surprised at first, but he soon recovered and offered Harry a big smile. “Hi Harry, Mr. Copper’s told me a bit about you. I’m The Doctor.”

“The Doctor? Doctor who?” Harry replied, still completely confused.

“Just… The Doctor.”


	2. Chapter 2

“Hi Harry! You’re back early.” Mr. Copper said diverting their attention. “This is the friend I told you about. He was just trying to get me to travel with him for a bit, I was about to explain to him that there’s no way I could go, I’d never leave you behind…”

“So I can just go with you.” Harry intervened. 

“But, what about your job at the bakery, Harry?” Mr. Copper continued. 

“And you’re very young.” The Doctor added. “I’m sure you’d miss your parents and your siblings.”

“Well, my father left when I was about seven.” Harry started to explain, knots in his stomach already beginning to form. “And as for my mom and Gemma…”

Harry wanted to say something, he had to explain it somehow, but it was as if the words couldn’t physically reach his mouth. The memory of him waking up on that day automatically came to his mind. 

 

AUGUST 2010 – Flashback 

The sounds around him were slowly becoming more distinguishable. He could make out a voice somewhere close to him, but no words were clear yet. His eyes were closed as if he had been sleeping, but he was feeling completely exhausted. The mattress underneath him felt very thin, and the pillow too high, he was definitely not on his bed. He focused his attention on the voice to try and understand a bit more about where he was and what was happening.

“There she was, not completely alive and not completely dead. A mere shadow of what she had once been. She had materialized in front of him and she didn’t appear to know what had happened. With a mixture of confusion and fear, she kept repeating ‘I’m falling! I’m falling!’” Harry recognized Mr. Copper’s voice telling the story. He slowly opened up his eyes, getting used to the light, and noticed Mr. Copper sitting by his side looking out a window. “Feeling saddened about what had happened, the man still felt like he had to help her somehow.” Mr. Copper continued. “He then opened a window and said ‘No, Astrid, you’re not falling. You’re flying!’ And so, after everything that had happened, after saving everyone and being able to experience her dream of travelling and seeing new planets, even if just for a few minutes, she flew through the window, into space and to the stars, becoming forever stardust.”

At that moment, Mr. Copper looked at the bed to check on Harry and realized he had been awake for some time. Mr. Copper’s expression quickly changed from sad to worried. “Hello Harry! So you’re finally awake!” He said trying to smile.

“Hi, Mr. Copper. Where am I?” Harry said while he tried to sit up. However, as soon as he started moving, he felt a sudden and sharp pain on his chest and everything started to spin, forcing him to lie down again. His head seemed heavy and he could feel something around his chest; there were definitely some bandages on him. 

Mr. Copper immediately held him in place. “Do not try to move Harry. You are in a hospital. Do you remember anything about the accident?”

It was only then that Harry noticed where he was. He was in a very small room, and everything around him seemed to be white. There was a plant and a couple of flowers on a table by his side and a chair on the other side, which was where Mr. Copper was sitting. He could hear a beeping sound, which he hadn’t really given much attention to before, but now he realized it was most likely his monitor. He could see through the window that there was daylight outside; it was probably the middle of the afternoon. Harry tried to focus. He was supposed to be in Ireland for a summer course in Law. He could remember packing and leaving the house to go to the airport, his mom and Gemma had both insisted on taking him since it would be the first time he would ever travel abroad by himself. He could remember having to sit in the backseat of the car, because Gemma had screamed ‘Shot gun!’ while she ran towards the car. He could also remember sitting in the middle because, even though it was the most uncomfortable seat in the car, he really wanted to be able to see his mom and Gemma while they talked. And then… What had happened after that? Harry focused a bit more trying to remember.

“We were in a car going to the airport…” Harry mumbled. “And then I remember a blinding white light, and then nothing.” Harry finished. He literally couldn’t remember anything else about the previous night, no matter how hard he tried. Harry started to panic. “Why? What happened? Where are my mom and Gemma?” Harry asked desperately.

Mr. Copper was looking at Harry without saying anything. Harry was getting more and more worried by the second. Mr. Copper seemed like he was trying to force himself to say something he didn’t want to. As if he was trying to find the words to describe what had happened, but couldn’t find the best way to do so. He finally said “Harry, all of you were in a car accident.” Harry felt his heart drop. “Your mom was driving on her side of the road, when a drunk driver came on the opposite direction at a very high speed and lost control of his car. Your mom tried to dodge it, but the man ended up hitting your car and accidently pushing you off the cliff. The three of you fell, Harry, I’m so sorry. The cliff was about 25 meters high and the car crashed smashing its front portion. Since you were in the back, you didn’t suffer as much damage as you could have. You had brain hemorrhage, which was not severe, no operation was necessary, and a few broken ribs. You will have to stay in the hospital for a while, you’re still under observation.” Mr. Copper explained. 

Harry could hear every word that Mr. Copper was saying, but it was as if he couldn’t really register them. Everything seemed surreal, like it was a movie being played, instead of his actual life. “What about Mom and Gemma? Are they here in the hospital too?” Harry couldn’t stop himself from asking. His heart was beating faster than it ever had before and he was seriously shaking, but he needed to know.

Mr. Copper turned away as if he couldn’t bear to see Harry’s reaction to what he was about to say. Staring at his hands, he said “The other driver called 999 immediately and waited for the paramedics to get there. He was taken to the police department not long after that. From what I‘ve been told, your mother passed away before the paramedics got to the scene.” Mr. Copper stopped speaking at this point and couldn’t help but to look at Harry, putting his hand on his shoulder, “I’m so sorry, my little boy.”

Harry was looking at Mr. Copper refusing to believe the words that were coming out of his mouth. This was not real. It couldn’t be happening. Yesterday had been such a regular day, how could anything like this have happened? Why would anything like this have happened? No, Harry couldn’t accept it. He started shaking his head in disbelief. He brought his hands to his face, trying to wipe the tears away, but they just wouldn’t stop falling.

“When the paramedics finally got to you and your sister, you were both in pretty bad shape. They strapped you two to gurneys and brought you back to the hospital. Gemma had a more serious head injury and she needed immediate surgery. They did their best Harry, but she was in a really bad shape.” Mr. Copper’s voice cracked. “And she had always been such a fighter that one, always provoking everyone,” he said in a fond, but sad tone. “But she couldn’t resist the surgery. She passed away on the doctor’s operation table.”

Both of them were crying now. Mr. Copper had become a very close family friend; this couldn’t be easy for him either. But Harry couldn’t think about that right now. He still couldn’t wrap his head around the fact that his hilarious, annoying, sweet and beautiful big sister wouldn’t come running into his room at any moment yelling at him for having missed his flight. He couldn’t accept the fact that his mom, who had taught him everything he knows, like how to treat people, how to see the world, how to be accepting and kind, wouldn’t be by his side taking care of him and helping him get his health back. Both of them had helped him so many times, even without knowing it, with their cheerful, strong and protective personalities. Without them, he was completely lost. The ground was falling out from under him. He didn’t have a prospect, a future, a home anymore. He was drifting, lost at sea.

When people think about death, they usually worry about their own mortality, when they’ll die, how. This never worried Harry, he was never concerned with his own passing. It was other people’s which scared him the most. The way he saw it, when someone died, it meant that their life had ended; there wouldn’t be any long term suffering for them. After a death occurs, the person who has died cannot feel saddened or wounded because of what has happened. A death doesn’t permanently hurt whoever has passed away, it hurts everyone who gets left behind. It leaves a scar on those who live, a mark that’ll always be there. Harry had been left, alone and having to carry on with his life without those who had meant so much to him. He would forever miss their presence and feel emptiness in him, as if he couldn’t be whole anymore. And the worst part is that, no matter how hard they might try to avoid it, people will eventually resort to their imagination. Harry would always wonder what Gemma might have become, what she might have done. She had been just 19, a teenager. She still had her whole life in front of her. It’s something no one can really accept. How can a life be cut in the middle when they still had so much to offer? She would never find her dream job, or buy her first house, or get married, or have kids. His mom would never be able to see her kids grown up and feel proud of the people they had become. They didn’t deserve this, Harry didn’t deserve this.

They sat there in silence, tears uncontrollably falling. He suddenly felt a little gratitude towards Mr. Copper. Harry wouldn’t be able to bear hearing anyone trying to console him right now. There was nothing anyone could say that would make any of this ok. All that was left was feeling their absence, knowing he had no choice but to move on, but not being able to imagine how to do so. He didn’t want to talk or listen to anything anymore. He just wanted to lie still, doing everything he could to slow time down, so he would still be able to see them, to feel them.

After about a week, Uncle Mike and Aunt Dee took the time to talk to Harry and explain that, since he was only 16, the house had been left to them. They were planning on renting it for about 2 years, having Harry come live with them. Once he turned 18, they’d pass the house on to his name and he could go live there or sell it, whatever he wanted. Harry, however, didn’t like this plan very much. Uncle Mike and Aunt Dee already had three kids and Harry didn’t want to be an imposition. Besides that, to be honest, he didn’t feel like he could leave his house yet. Being in their home was the only way for him to be close to Gemma and Anne right now. Harry tried to explain to his aunt and uncle that he didn’t want to live anywhere else at the moment and Mr. Copper immediately offered to stay with him to help him with whatever was necessary. Uncle Mike and Aunt Dee didn’t want to accept this agreement at first, since they were really worried about Harry. But, after he strongly insisted for a couple more weeks, they ended up saying yes, as long as they were able to go visit him every weekend. 

The days in the hospital passed slowly by. Every day, during visiting hours, Mr. Copper would come and his aunt, uncle and cousins dropped by during the weekend. However, Harry was usually by himself during mornings and at nights. Whenever alone, Harry didn’t have anything around to distract himself with, so he struggled with trying to take his mind away from the feeling of sadness and emptiness. The shock of the loss had passed, now he just felt numb, as if affected by what happened but not able to react; stuck in this place, not moving, waiting for something to happen. Mr. Copper’s company was soothing, or at least as much as it could be. Mr. Copper didn’t try to make Harry talk, or to force a smile out of him. He actually didn’t expect anything from Harry and that was what was so soothing. Harry could be himself. He could be quiet if he felt like it, he could cry or laugh or talk or do whatever felt comfortable for him. His family, on the other hand, was always looking at Harry and waiting to see what he’d do. It was as if Harry was the one who was supposed to be comforting them, telling them that everything would be ok, that he would be ok. But Harry didn’t know if that was true, he didn’t know if he’d ever be able to be ok and he didn’t enjoy having to pretend. Of course his family was also sad about what had happened, but Harry had barely been able to handle his own emotions, he couldn’t really be much help to others. He didn’t want anyone to feel worst than they already did though, so every time his family came around, he’d do his best to force on a smile and make small talk. He’d ask about their jobs, their week, their neighbors, anything to keep them talking. That was the best way out, keep them talking, so that he didn’t have to.

Harry really appreciated Mr. Copper coming every single day. His presence had helped him a lot. Even though Harry constantly felt the absence of his family, he didn’t actually feel alone. The one thing that helped him get his mind off of everything, even if just for a few minutes, was hearing that story. The story which had been the first thing Harry had heard after waking up. He would ask Mr. Copper to repeat it practically every day, it gave him a sense of hope, he couldn’t really explain how or why. By now, he already knew the story by heart, but he loved to hear Mr. Copper telling it. Mr. Copper would always look as if he was in his own world, almost like he was actually trying to remember what had happened. 

The story was about a simple girl named Astrid who had always dreamed about traveling to different planets and seeing new sights and species. This girl hadn’t had a lot of money, but she had worked hard all her life until she had finally been able to get a job as a waitress on a space ship. During her first trip, she had been serving the passengers and one of them in particular had been extremely nice to her, so they soon became friends. With the help of her new friend, she had managed to sneak her way into a group of passengers who were going down to visit the planet below, and she had been able to set foot on another planet for a brief few minutes. She had been so happy; she had been barely able to contain her excitement. However, not long after that, she had discovered that the captain was actually trying to crash the ship on the planet beneath, which would kill millions of people in the process. The captain had had some sort of personal vendetta against the company which had sponsored the trip, and that was his way of trying to make a statement. She had tried to fight him, with the help of her friend, but she had found no other way out besides jumping, and bringing the captain with her, to their death. After this, the crew had been able to get control of the ship back and save everyone, all because of what she had done. The friend she had made couldn’t accept her death, and he had tried his best to bring her back to life. Using some of the technology from the ship, he had managed to get her to reappear in front of him, but she hadn’t come back properly. She had come back merely as a shadow of herself, stuck in a moment, thinking she was still falling to her death. Very scared and confused, she kept repeating “I’m falling! I’m falling!” Her friend, wanting to help her however he could, opened a window letting her float away into space and said “You’re not falling, you’re flying!” And she turned into stardust, forever traveling amongst the stars and the planets. This was a very tragic story, but Harry couldn’t help but find it stunning and it somehow inspired him a little, gave him a bit of hope. 

 

NOVEMBER 2010 – Present day

“Well…” Harry continued, looking at the floor. “You could say they’re not around anymore.” 

Harry could hear Mr. Copper, who had been sitting on the couch, get up and walk towards him. He lifted his head up. This wasn’t the time; he really wanted to understand what was happening at that moment and they couldn’t get sidetracked. “And as for the bakery,” Harry continued, “they can easily find someone else to replace me. So, where are we going?” He repeated the question. 

Both Mr. Copper and The Doctor stood very still. The doctor was somehow looking sympathetic, as if he had understood a bit too well what Harry had meant by ‘not being around anymore.’ For a few seconds, Harry let his mind drift and wonder what that strange new man might have had to go through during his life. He seemed to be quite young, but his eyes… He had old eyes, eyes that reflected sadness and loneliness. Then, a thought crossed Harry’s mind. Maybe they didn’t want him around, maybe they just wanted to travel a bit without having to worry about the sixteen-year-old boy with the tragic past. Maybe they thought he’d just be in the way.

“I mean, before everything that happened back in August, I was going to travel around a little. Travelling has always been something I’ve wanted to do. I like to believe that life is about the people you meet and the things you get to experience, so travelling gives us more opportunities. These past couple of months I’ve been feeling stuck, like I don’t really know how to proceed or how to carry on. Travelling could maybe help me. It could open my mind up to new possibilities or help me see beyond this hole that I’ve trapped myself in. I would love to travel with you two, and I promise I would do my best not to be a bother. I could cook for you, and clean, I’d do the dishes, whatever you wanted.” Harry begged, hopeful.

Mr. Copper looked like he really wanted to let Harry come with them, but couldn’t bring himself to say anything. Harry had no idea what could be bothering him, so he decided to focus on the other parts of the conversation he had heard to see if he could figure out what might be happening. Harry could remember they had mentioned something about travelling to a place named Sto. He didn’t really know where Sto was, but he imagined it would be a small city, maybe somewhere in Asia or Africa. He then remembered them talking about a milk market, a nice smell… Suddenly, a sentence came to his head ‘I’ve been living here on Earth for the last 3 years.’ But… Where could Mr. Copper have lived before that? Harry would have known something this big, Mr. Copper would have told him. Or wouldn’t he have? Harry looked around again and saw The Doctor looking back and forth between Mr. Copper and him, as if letting them decide what would happen, and Mr. Copper nervously looking at his feet, seemingly not knowing what to do. 

“Where is Sto exactly?” Harry couldn’t stop himself from asking.

“Sto is a planet situated in the Casivanian Belt.” The Doctor automatically replied.

Harry’s eyes immediately turned to Mr. Copper’s direction. “So it actually is a different planet… I heard a bit of your conversation as I was walking in before.” Harry explained. “You also mentioned something about Sto having cyborgs and Zo… Zoi?” Harry attempted.

“Cyborgs and Zocci, yes. Well, and humanoids as well, like Mr. Copper.” The Doctor clarified.

Harry took in a deep breath. So, apparently, Mr. Copper was originally from a planet named Sto, he had been living on Earth for 3 years, he now wanted to go visit his native planet and this friend of his could take him there somehow. It still made absolutely no sense. “No. This can’t be right. I would’ve known about it.” Harry said, mostly trying to convince himself. He remembered what Mr. Copper had told him about his past, about his life before becoming his neighbor. “Mr. Copper doesn’t like to talk about his past much, but he’s told me that he is originally from London, and that he moved here three years ago because he wanted to start a new life.” Harry explained. “Isn’t that right, Mr. Copper?”

Mr. Copper was still looking at his own feet, avoiding any eye contact with anyone. “Isn’t that right, Mr. Copper?” Harry repeated louder. At that moment, Mr. Copper lifted his gaze towards Harry. His eyes conveyed the fear and nervousness he appeared to be feeling.

“I’m so sorry, Harry. I never told you about any of this because I never really thought it was relevant. You have been through enough in your life; you didn’t need me to add any extra burden on your shoulders. You’re a young kid who shouldn’t have to think about any of this.” He rambled on. “But, I’m sorry if I let you down by keeping this from you. You have to understand that it wasn’t because I didn’t trust you enough; it was simply because I wanted to protect you, at least as much I was able to. I consider you family, my young boy. Please don’t hate me, I don’t think I could handle that.” He said bringing his gaze down once more.

“What? What are you talking about?” Harry immediately replied. “I could never hate you, Mr. Copper. I wouldn’t have survived without you these past few months. Whether you’re human, an alien or even secretly a superhero, you have helped me beyond words. I just… I don’t understand.” Harry said. “If you’re from a different planet, why are you here on Earth? What happened to you? Do you have any family back in Sto?” He had so many questions, he didn’t know where to stop. “What about special powers? Can you fly? Can you run really fast? Can you…”

“Calm down, Harry.” Mr. Copper stopped him, laughing. “Let me make this clear, I am not a superhero, and I don’t have any ‘superpowers’. My race and the humans are very similar, that’s why The Doctor called me a humanoid. ” He smiled. “I used to be a travelling salesman, but I reached retirement with little to show for it. I had no credits, no family, no house, and so I made some mistakes. The Doctor helped me with everything and I was able to escape here to Earth. I’m pretty sure if I ever returned to Sto I’d get arrested for about 10 years.” Mr. Copper said. “Don’t get me wrong, Harry, I never hurt anyone. I just forged some documents so that I could get a job, things like that.”

“Oh, come on! They probably think you’re dead! It will be fine, don’t worry about it!” The Doctor insisted.

Harry kept looking from Mr. Copper to The Doctor completely flabbergasted. So, Mr. Copper was not only an alien, but also a wanted criminal. Ok, the crimes he had committed had been minor and he had apparently been going through a tough time, but still, it was a lot to find out in a single conversation. But then again, what gave Harry the right to judge anyone? Especially Mr. Copper, who had always been so nice and caring, who had given up even his own house to help Harry in every way he could. “Are you ok, Harry?” Mr. Copper asked nervously. 

“Yeah, I guess. I mean, I’d never have imagined this in a millions years.” Harry answered, still stunned by everything that was happening. “But, this just means I have a lot more to find out about you. Maybe our friendship has been too one sided; you have always been the one to be there for me, let me be there for you. Let’s go visit your home planet, you can show me around and tell me all your stories.” Harry said excitedly.

“Well, I would actually love to see Sto again…” Mr Copper admitted.

“Settled then, let’s go! The TARDIS is parked right outside.” The Doctor said already walking towards the door.

Harry followed him, though he had no idea what a “TARDIS” was supposed to be. The Doctor stopped walking in front of what seemed to be a telephone booth, and started searching for the key to open it. It was a blue booth which had a “POLICE BOX” sign on top of it. Harry didn’t know what “police boxes” were used for, but by this point he was just enjoying the ride, it was already pretty clear he didn’t understand much about aliens or travelling through space. The Doctor opened the blue box and Mr. Copper followed him inside. Harry wondered how all of them would fit in there, he wasn’t exactly short for a sixteen-year-old, but he went inside of it anyway. However, as soon as he stepped in the box, he could see that it was gigantic. It was as if an entire house had been put inside a shoe box. The first thing you could see once you stepped in the “police box” was what appeared to be a control room. The walls were of a golden brown color and they had several hexagonal shapes on them. In the middle of the room, there was a huge console with six panels and some type of see-through pillar in the center. Looking around, you could see several doors which probably led to different rooms. Harry felt mesmerized and couldn’t avoid making the obvious comment “It’s bigger on the inside!”

“That’s always my favorite part,” The Doctor, who had been staring at Harry and observing his reaction closely, immediately replied with a huge smile. “Welcome to the TARDIS, Harry. Time And Relative Dimension In Space.” He said in a very smug tone. “She can travel anywhere in space or time.”

“Time travel? Are you kidding?” Harry said laughing. How could there be so much he didn’t know about?

“No, I’m very serious.” The Doctor said trying to keep a straight face.

The Doctor was very friendly, though all over the place and a bit crazy as well. “You’re very strange.” Harry pointed out with a bright smile. “But, what about you? I don’t really know anything about you. Where are you from?”

“I am the Doctor. I’m a time lord. I’m from the planet Gallifrey of the constellation of Kasterborous. I’m 905 years old.” He recited.

“Well, you’re looking very well for 905.” Harry joked. Everything about this situation was unbelievable.

“You should see me in the mornings!” The Doctor replied and ran towards the console. “Everyone grab something and hold tightly. Allons-y!” He said as he pulled one of the handles and a very loud noise echoed in the background, a sound similar to a metallic siren. Everything started moving and Harry had to grab the handrail that was next to him quickly, otherwise he would’ve been thrown around the TARDIS. When the sound finally ceased, everything stopped moving and Harry was able to let go of the handrail and walk around a bit. It really seemed to be huge in there, maybe even bigger than a house. “You can open the doors if you want.” The Doctor said, pointing to the front of the TARDIS.

Harry wouldn’t have thought it was something he should do, but The Doctor knew what he was doing and Harry really wanted to see if anything had happened outside after all the commotion. He opened them slowly and almost had an instant heart attack. All he could see in front of him was darkness and stars. There was nothing beneath him or above him; he was in space. He was actually, literally in space and it was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen in his life. He carefully sat down by the front doors, dangling his feet into nothing. He could see several stars, some really bright and some almost fading, and he couldn’t take his eyes away from the stunning view. He had no idea how The Doctor had been able to make that possible, but, in reality, he didn’t really care. He had been rendered speechless, everything was unbelievably surreal. He spent the next few minutes looking into space, trying to see different planets and stars, while he sat in a blue box that could apparently fly.

“I extended the TARDIS’s oxygen bubble beyond its doors, so that there would be no danger in opening them. Not that you seemed to be worried about that.” The Doctor jokingly explained. “Although, you should come back inside and hold on to something, Harry. I do have to land the TARDIS eventually if we want to get to Sto anytime soon.” The Doctor said.

Disappointed he had to close the doors, but still very grateful for being able to experience this, Harry came back inside and held onto the handrail once more. He looked at The Doctor and uttered a simple “Thank you,” trying his best to convey in those words how appreciative he felt. The Doctor smiled back as he pulled the handle once more, causing the loud sound to restart and everything to move around. After what felt like less than a minute, it all suddenly stopped.

“We are here!” The Doctor screamed looking at a small screen on the console. “And I’ve managed to park right next to the milk market.” He said smugly. “Let me just check what year this is. We wouldn’t want Mr. Copper to accidently see himself walking around the milk market.”

“What?” A completely confused Harry replied.

“Wibbly wobbly, timey wimey.” The Doctor answered confusing Harry even more. “It’s ok, don’t worry. We can go outside.” He concluded.

Harry suddenly started feeling very anxious and excited about stepping on a different planet for the first time in his life. He didn’t know what to expect. Would people look different? Would their culture be completely strange to him? He was very nervous, but whatever he was feeling at that moment, it was nothing compared to what Mr. Copper seemed to be feeling. Mr. Copper had run towards the front doors as soon as The Doctor had mentioned arriving, and he was just standing there, silently trying to summon up the courage to see his home planet again after all this time. It had probably been hard for him having to spend all those years away from his home; he must have missed it terribly. Harry walked closer to Mr. Copper placing his hand on his shoulder encouragingly, and Mr. Copper took in a deep breath while he opened the doors.

Harry didn’t know what he had been expecting to find, but it definitely hadn’t been that. As soon as he stepped out of the TARDIS, he could see a lot of people and everyone was just walking around and chatting as if it were a normal day. Surprisingly, it almost felt like he had been brought back to Earth, nothing looked that much different. Well, nothing except for the people. There were humanoids, like Mr. Copper, a species very similar to humans. However, after looking very closely, Harry had been able to notice cyborgs as well. For some reason, most of them appeared to be trying to hide their mechanical parts with clothes or accessories, which seemed easy for the ones who only had a small part of their body as a machine, but not so simple for those who had a larger part covered by metal. And finally, there were Zocci, who The Doctor had previously mentioned, but hadn’t exactly explained or described. They were actually the most unusual out of the three. Their skin was bright red, their heads were covered in spikes and they were much shorter than humanoids. All three species were wandering the market and the place looked completely crowded. In addition to the people, the sky also looked different from back on Earth. It was not blue as Harry had presumed it would be, but a mixture of pink and orange, similar to how it looks during sunrises, and it was utterly beautiful. There were several tents with what was probably milk in different colors. Harry wondered whether the white milk would taste the same as back on Earth, but besides white, they also offered pink, blue, purple and green milk and the ladder did not look very appetizing. Harry could see some signs next to the tents and they were written in perfect English, which made absolutely no sense.

“Do they speak English, Doctor?” Harry asked.

“No. Well, yes. Technically no. They have their own language, but the TARDIS translates everything for you. Once you’ve travelled with her, she gets into your head and changes your perception. She makes it so that whenever you hear or read an alien language, it seems like it is actually your native language. Right now, we’re not even speaking English.” The Doctor explained.

“Are you kidding me? Whenever I feel like you might have run out of ways to surprise me you go and find a new one.” Harry laughed.

Mr. Copper, who hadn’t been listening to the conversation, suddenly exclaimed, “It looks exactly as I remembered!” He had been looking at the market beaming. “I missed this so much!” He said while walking away from the TARDIS and into the market. “We’ll meet again later! I need to look around for a bit!” And he disappeared.

They watched as Mr. Copper left, and Harry couldn’t help but notice that The Doctor looked a bit frustrated. “No matter who I’m travelling with, they always break the first rule…” The doctor grumbled.

“What’s the first rule?” Harry asked, curious.

“Don’t wander off.” He replied looking in the direction Mr. Copper had just disappeared to.

Harry chuckled at the fact that wandering off had been the first thing Mr. Copper had done, and it was exactly what Harry was going to do next. “Well…” He started.

“Fine!” The Doctor said giving up, “I’ll meet both of you back here in a few minutes.” He added using a pretend angry tone.

Harry nodded, grinning, and started walking towards the tent on the right. He wondered if he would be able to taste any milk without paying, since he didn’t have any money. He didn’t even know whether they actually used money. He decided to grab one of the bottles to take a closer look, but, when he tried to reach for one of them, he accidently pushed another off the counter, spilling most of its milk on the person that was standing next to him.

“Oops,” Harry said as reflex. He immediately felt completely embarrassed.

“Hi,” the stranger replied with an intriguing smile.


End file.
